European converts that came to Utah before it was a state - did they become US citizens?
Some of my ancestors were converted by the early missionaries in Europe and came to settle Utah/Idaho/Wyoming/Arizona in the 1850's. Since Utah didn't become a state until 1896. Would they have even needed to apply for citizenship?
I can find record of their arrival in the US but I cannot find any record of citizenship. How did that work when they were heading straight to Utah Territory as soon as they arrived in the country?
I think Birthright Citizenship began in 1866 — but Utah wasn't a state until 1896. So would children born in Utah after 1866 have automatically gotten birthright citizenship? Or would that have only applied to those born after Utah became a state in 1896?
Answers
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Hello @BlaineHoopes !
Birthright Citizenship in the United States in Wikipedia might shed some light on your question. Birthright Citizenship was ratified by the 14th Amendment on July 9, 1868 having to do with persons born within United States territory. Even though Utah didn't become a state until 1896, I think any person born within the United States territory on or after July 9, 1868 might have acquired birthright citizenship.
Doesn't anyone else have thoughts about this question or references??
Thank you!
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Thanks for the reply. You may notice if you re-read my original post that I already knew about birthright citizenship.
However my Ancestors came in 1850's and started having children who were born in Idaho and Utah in the 1850's before birthright citizenship. And then I still wonder if birthright citizenship applied to those born after the 14th amendment but still before Utah became a state.
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I asked ChatGPT about citizenship in Utah in the 1850s. Here's what it said:
"Yes, a person who migrated to the Utah Territory from another country around 1850 would generally still need to apply for U.S. citizenship, regardless of whether Utah was a territory or later became a state.
Here's why:
- Territorial vs. State Status: Utah was a U.S. territory starting in 1850 and became a state in 1896. Territorial status did not grant automatic citizenship to immigrants living there. Citizenship was governed by federal laws, not territorial or state laws.
- Naturalization Process: In the mid-19th century, immigrants were required to go through the U.S. naturalization process to become citizens. This typically involved filing a Declaration of Intent ("first papers") to renounce allegiance to their country of origin, residing in the U.S. for a minimum period (usually 5 years), and then filing a Petition for Naturalization ("second papers").
- Statehood Did Not Change Citizenship Requirements: When Utah became a state in 1896, it did not automatically grant U.S. citizenship to foreign-born residents who had not yet gone through the naturalization process. Citizenship was a federal matter, and statehood had no effect on federal naturalization laws.
- Voting and Other Rights: Without U.S. citizenship, immigrants in Utah, whether as a territory or a state, would not have been able to vote or hold certain public offices.
- Special Cases: There were some exceptions, such as children of naturalized citizens who were underage when their parents became citizens, who might automatically gain citizenship through their parents.
If the individual had already naturalized before Utah became a state, they would remain a U.S. citizen. Otherwise, they would have to follow the regular process to apply for citizenship."
ChatGPT gave me some articles to read about this process, but I did not find anything specific in them to verify this information. Here are the articles if you are interested:
Early America Immigration Policies from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
History of laws concerning Immigration and Naturalization in the United States from Wikipedia
A brief history of US immigration policy from the CATO Institute.
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I don't trust generative AI summaries. At all. The above — "explaining" that knotting a thread is a type of buttonhole — is not a repost of a random possibly-doctored meme. It's a screenshot of the result of a search I did yesterday.
ChatGPT's summary does not appear to address the question that was actually asked. Yes, obviously, immigrants had to apply for citizenship. The question wasn't about them, but about their children. Did people born in a territory need to apply for citizenship? Was the answer different based on their parentage?
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Thanks for these replies. Yes, I also did not trust some of the AI answers I found when searching online.
This question came up for me when I heard an NPR radio interview with an Arizona politician (sorry I can't remember if he was Mayor or what - might have been Mesa, AZ) asking him how he felt about Trumps plan to end birthright citizenship seeing as the AZ politician's great grandparents were Mormon Immigrant settlers of AZ. Kind of a dumb question I thought since Mormon Settlers weren't "illegal immigrants" but the question got me wondering and then when I started searching online and asking everyone I could think of to ask, I was not finding any clear answers. So that's why I came here to ask. I really appreciate the thoughtful replies so far! 😂
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